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<p class=MsoNormal>Commentary<b><o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Myths about languages in the Philippines<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><a
href="http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20080301-122108/Myths-about-languages-in-the-Philippines">http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquireropinion/columns/view/20080301-122108/Myths-about-languages-in-the-Philippines</a>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>By Isabel Pefianco Martin<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Philippine Daily Inquirer<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>First Posted 02:27:00 03/01/2008<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>While the nation awaits the outcome of the hearings on the
ZTE-NBN deal, a small, almost invisible battle continues to be waged among
stakeholders of language and literacy in the country. Very few are aware of the
persistent efforts of lawmakers to institutionalize English as the sole
language of learning in basic education. Even fewer wonder if the Speak English
Only Policy of some schools or the present Bilingual Education Policy of the
Department of Education actually works.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>I have been reflecting on these movements in language and
literacy for some years now. I have come to realize that many arguments about
the issue are hinged on buried premises, on myths about languages in the
Philippines.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>The first set of myths has to do with English in the
Philippines. There is a prevailing belief that if you don’t know English,
you simply don’t know! This myth is evident in Filipinos who laugh at
those who do not speak English with native-like fluency and accuracy, in school
heads who will not hire a teacher because he or she has a strong Ilocano
accent, and in teachers who give low marks to students with subject-verb
agreement or preposition errors in their compositions. These teachers overlook
depth of insight or evidence of critical thinking in the students’ writings.
The link between intelligence and English language proficiency is very flimsy.
In this world, you will find intelligent people who cannot speak a word of
English, as well as not-so-smart ones who are native speakers of the language.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Another misconception about English is that the language
cures all economic ailments. This is evident in House bills that seek to make
English as the sole medium of instruction in the elementary and high school
levels. The goal is to produce English-proficient graduates for contact
centers, hospitals and medical transcription offices, never mind if these
graduates are unthinking products of the schools. This belief that English
brings in the money is also evident in most contact center training programs
which overemphasize proficiency in the language, while sacrificing the
agents’ ability to manage culture-diverse environments. Working in a
contact center is very demanding. The ability to speak like an American will
certainly not ensure excellent performance in the contact center jobs.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>That some Filipinos aspire for native-like proficiency in
English is symptomatic of another misconception about the language. This
aspiration points to the myth that there is only one kind of English language
in this world, and that is, Standard American English. What many do not know is
that World Englishes exist, and Philippine English is just one among these many
Englishes.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>In 1969, Teodoro Llamzon, the first president of the
Linguistic Society of the Philippines, already wrote about this in his
trailblazing “Standard Filipino English.” In 1996, at De La Salle
University-Manila, a conference on the theme “English is an Asian
Language” reintroduced this idea of English as a Philippine language. It
was at this conference that poet Gemino Abad proudly declared that the
Filipinos have “colonized the English language!”<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>And then there is the myth that English and Filipino are
languages in opposition to each other. This is evident in those who insist that
English should be totally removed from basic education, as well as in some of
the reasons cited for opposing House Bill 305 and Executive Order 210.
Nationalism always seems to be associated with the Filipino language, as if one
cannot express one’s love of country in English or in the local languages.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Finally, the most dangerous of all myths is the belief that
there is no place for the local languages in basic education. This is evident
in the existence of the Bilingual Education Policy, as well as in the
persistent efforts of lawmakers to pass House Bill 305 (formerly known as HB
4701). In public schools across the nation, teachers have already been using
the local languages (a.k.a. first language or mother tongue, which includes
English and Tagalog in the cities) in teaching basic concepts to schoolchildren.
No amount of legislation can remove the first languages from their natural
settings, which to my mind include the schools.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>This year, as we celebrate the International Year of
Languages, we must also celebrate the reality that the Philippines is a
multilingual paradise.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>As the nation focuses on the present crisis of credibility,
it has become trapped in the past sins of its leaders. But what about the
future of this nation which lies in the tiny hands of the schoolchildren who
continue to drop out of school because they cannot understand their teachers?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Isabel Pefianco Martin is president of the Linguistic
Society of the Philippines. She is associate professor at the Department of
English of the Ateneo de Manila University and part-time commissioner of the
Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino (Commission on Filipino Language), representing
Kinaray-a/Hiligaynon. She is also a member of International Year of Languages
Committee-Philippines (IYLC Philippines). For information about the
contributions of LSP to IYLC Philippines, please visit www.lsphil.org. You may
email your comments to linguisticsoc(at)gmail.com.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
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